The World Forgot About Her
by dreamingleaf7
Summary: "Being forgotten… Is almost like not being there to begin with. You won't forget me… Right Neku?" A forgotten partner, a forgotten week... All... Lost.
1. Chapter 1

"_Being forgotten… Is almost like not being there to begin with. You won't forget me… Right Neku?"_

* * *

><p>Cherushii Shinzo knew.<p>

She knew that once she saw those thugs pull out their switchblades that she should have ran.

What Cherushii Shinzo didn't know was that after they stabbed her, she would still be in Shibuya…

* * *

><p><em>Why am I here?<em> A 15-year-old girl thought. She pushed herself off the ground, dusting off her pants and adjusting her top. She looked around her, a small frown on her face. _Okay, calm down and repeat everything that you remember in your mind…_ She thought, taking a deep breath to calm herself. _I am Cherushii Shinzo. I live in Shibuya. I am currently 15-years-old. I am right now in 104 in the middle of the street. _

She sighed. _Okay, now remember what happened before. I was walking home from groceries when these guys came up from behind me and stabbed me._

Cherushii winced, placing a hand on her side where the thugs stabbed her. _I'm supposed to be dead. Why am I not dead?_ Her cellphone in her pocket vibrated. Taking out the red device, Cherushii read the text with careful violet eyes.

"Take out the Noise in the area in 30 minutes or face erasure." She frowned reading the text over and over again. "Is this one of those spamming texts? What is Noise?" A sharp bolt of pain came from her hand, causing her to drop her phone. She looked at the palm of her hand, a timer counting down from 30 minutes scratched in red on her flesh.

"This… This…" Suddenly, a large wolf like monster with blue markings launched at her from nowhere. Cherushii screamed, quickly picking up her phone and dodging away from its attack. _Does no one see this thing!_ She bolted for the road that led to the Scramble, only to make contact with a large invisible wall. "Agh! W-what?" She stuttered. As she evaded another swipe of the paw from the wolf, she tried the other routes that led to Dogenzaka and the Shibu Main Store, only to end up with the same problem.

"I can't get out!" Cherushii cried. The wolf pounced at her. She screamed, holding up her arms to protect herself when a voice shouted,

"You idiot! Watch out!"

The wolf thing was knocked away by a large fireball. A boy of 15 ran up to Cherushii, holding his hand out. His outfit was quite strange, but what stuck out the most was his bright orange hair. "Make a pact with me." He commanded. He held his hand out, blue eyes serious.

"What?" Cherushii asked, confused.

"Just agree to make a pact with me!"

She yelped at his suddenly loud tone. "O-Okay!" She gripped his hand, lights surrounding and emitting from their hands. "W-What's with all the lights?" She asked once the lights dimmed down.

"I'll answer all your questions later, just help me defeat all the Noise."

She hid behind the boy as the wolf slow began to regain consciousness. "These are Noise?"

"You got it. Now, we must complete the mission, come on! Use your pins."

"Um… O-Okay." Cherushii stuttered. "Wait! What pins?"

She could almost here the boy sigh in frustration. "They're in your pocket."

She reached into her her pocket, taking out a handful of pins with unique designs. She pinned the one with flames and the one with some kind of blue and yellow bullet onto her jeans. "Okay!"

* * *

><p><strong><em>Get Ready!<em>**

"Watch yourself!" The boy warned before disappearing.

Cherushii gasped. "W-Where did you go?"

"I'm in the other zone. I'll help you defeat the Noise, just focusing on landing hits on them." The boy said.

Cherushii nodded her head, before taking a fighting position. _Let's hope this works…_

Frogs with red markings accompanied the wolf with blue markings, all aiming to attack her. Cherushii held out her hands, yellow and blue bullets launching at the Noise. _A-Am I doing this? _Cherushii thought, continuing to shoot at them. She pressed the other pin on her pants, the one with flames. Focusing on the area where the frogs were, she held out her hand, flames appearing right on the area she was focusing on. The wolf came up from behind and slashed at her, breaking her concentration. "Ouch!" She yelped.

"Be careful!" The boy shouted from the other zone.

"I am!" She snapped back. She switched back to the pin with the bullet, firing back at the wolf. Suddenly, 4 cards with bar lines appeared in front of her. "Wait… I know these lines…" Cherushii whispered.

"You do?" The boy asked. "Those are probably your Fusion Cards. Guess what's on the cards and we'll be able to perform a Fusion!"

Cherushii frowned. "A Fusion? What's that?"

She heard the boy's smirk in his voice, "You'll see. Now guess the cards!"

As Cherushii performed a combo attack she guessed the first card, "Treble Cleft!" The card flipped over, revealing a black Treble Cleft.

"Great! Guess the next one!" The boy ordered.

She performed another attack, her black hair with blue highlights flying around widely. "Um… Bass Clef!" The card flipped, showing the black Bass Cleft.

"Two more! You're almost there!"

Shooting the bullets at the frogs, Cherushii exclaimed, "Whole Note!" The card flipped. _One more…._ "Treble Cleft!"

The card didn't flip.

"W-What?" Cherushii exclaimed, getting hit by the frog.

"Try again!" The boy shouted.

"Treble Cleft!"

The card didn't flip.

"Bass Cleft!"

"Whole Note!"

Cherushii bit her lip, dodging the wolf's attacks. _Come on Cherushii! What's another musical symbol?_ It then hit her. "Eighth Note!" The card flipped over.

A large surge of power enveloped Cherushii. "Whoa!" She exclaimed, shocked by how much power was building inside her.

"Crank up the music!" The boy exclaimed.

"And listen to the beat!" Cherushii shouted confidently. Suddenly, bar lines with music notes on them emerged from Cherushii and the boy, hitting the frogs and wolf. They were enveloped in bright yellow light. Once the light disappeared, the Noise did as well.

**_Noise Erased!_**

* * *

><p>Cherushii looked at her hand. "The timer's gone!" She exclaimed.<p>

"That's because we finished the mission." A familiar voice answered.

Cherushii yelped and turned around, the boy with orange hair behind her. She held her heart, breathing in deeply. "Don't do that! You almost gave me a heart attack."

He merely raised an eyebrow, slightly confused. "Anyway, you probably are wondering what's going on right now, right? I'll answer all your questions if you have any.

_Want to ask about anything?_

_Make your choice:_

_Where am I?_

_Who are you?_

"First of all…" Cherushii said. "Where am I?"

"You're in the UG, or Underground." He answered. "You're still in Shibuya, just a different dimension. The dimension that you were in before playing the Reaper's Game is called the RG. The UG is a place that only we, the Players, and the Reapers could see. It's not the other way around however."

_Want to ask about anything?_

_Make your choice:_

_Where am I?_

_The Reaper's Game_

_Reapers_

_Who are you?_

"The Reaper's Game?" Cherushii asked, tilting her head to the side.

"The Reaper's Game is a competition where people who died can have a second chance at life." He said.

"Wait, so I actually did die?" She exclaimed, unconsciously moving her hand to where those guys stabbed her.

He nodded. "Yup. In the game, you are given a week to complete 7 missions. Fail and you end up getting erased."

"Erased?"

"It's a form of dying in this game. Kind of like a permanent game over."

"Oh…"

He shook his head, getting back on track, "Anyway, you win you get to live again or become a Reaper."

_Want to ask about anything?_

_Make your choice:_

_Where am I?_

_The Reaper's Game_

_Reapers_

_Who are you?_

"Speaking of Reapers… What are they?"

The boy stuffed his hands in the pockets of his shorts. "They're administrators of the game, giving out missions and such."

_What a short explanation._ The black-haired girl thought.

_Want to ask about anything?_

_Make your choice:_

_Where am I?_

_The Reaper's Game_

_Reapers_

_Who are you?_

Cherushii face palmed, forgetting a very important question. "Right! I forgot to ask who you are!"

He looked at her with blue eyes. "Neku." The boy said. "Neku Sakuraba."

She giggled lightly. "Neku? It's almost like neko!"

Neku rolled his eyes. "Yeah whatever." He walked over to an alley and sat down, leaning his head against the wall.

Cherushii walked over to him, sitting down next to him. "Well, if you're wondering. My name's Cherushii Shinzo."

Neku didn't show any sign that he heard her. Cherushii sighed, leaning her head against the brick wall. _I wonder… Do Mom and Dad realize I'm gone?_ Her hands trailed up to her neck. She gasped, realizing that the object she was feeling wasn't there. "Where is it?" She exclaimed. Neku yelped in surprise, banging his head against the wall. He groggily looked at Cherushii as she crawled around the floor, searching for something.

"Where is it? I couldn't have lost it in the fight, right? I thought I had it with me the whole time!" She rambled on and on.

Neku groaned, rubbing the sore spot on his head. "_What_ are you doing?" He asked.

"My locket!" She exclaimed, still searching on the ground. "My locket! I can't lose it! It has my parents' picture in it and if I lose it I-."

"Calm down!" Neku snapped. Cherushii turned around, a thin line of water brimming her eyes. "The Reapers probably collected it as an entry fee."

"Entry fee?" She asked, wiping the water from her eyes with her arm.

He nodded. "In order to play the game, you have to give up the thing that you cherish the most. It can be anything really: objects, mementos, appearance, memories… People…"

Cherushii perked up at the last two words on the list. "You…" Neku looked at her. "Your entry fee was somebody _and_ your memory?"

Neku shrugged. "For the first and second week, yeah. Not a big deal."

She moved back to where she was sitting as Neku sat back down. "How long have you been playing this game?"

"Two weeks."

Cherushii frowned. "But… I thought that after you won you could live again."

He shook his head, orange locks flying about. "The Reapers thought I was too valuable and kept me in the game." His face was hidden behind his hair and collar.

"Neku?" Cherushii said his name, but she didn't seem to respond. _He must have fell asleep._ She sighed, pulling her legs up to her chest to lay her head on her knees. "Sleep well Neku…" Was the last thing she said before she closed her eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

**Day 2**

Cherushii woke up to an aching pain from her neck. "Ouch…" She hissed, rubbing the sore spot. "Note to self: Never sleep upright again…." She stood up and stretched, her gray striped-top falling a bit off her shoulder. "Right! Okay, Cherushii! Today's the second day of the game! You gotta focus!" She said to herself, swinging her arms back and forth. "So Neku, what's the-Neku?"

She stared wide-eyed at the spot where Neku last was, seeing it now empty. "Um… Where did you go?" She started to panic, not knowing how to deal with the situation. "Neku? Neku!" Cherushii yelled his name.

"Ugh… Will you just shut up? Stupid girl…"

She let out a squeak, turning around and seeing her orange-haired partner. "Oh… There you are. Don't sneak up on me like that!" She scowled, ignoring him when he rolled his eyes. Cherushii's phone rang. She gazed at him for a moment, the two sharing a look before she opened the phone. "Set a rodent trend in Shibuya's biggest music center, no time limit."

Cherushii closed the phone, sighing a bit. "At least we won't have to feel any short pain." She muttered, turning to the orange-haired boy. "What do you think the mission means?"

He shrugged, looking around before walking away.

"H-Hey! Where are you going?" She exclaimed, running after him.

He nonchalantly looked over his shoulder at her. Cherushii could tell Neku was a bit annoyed by all of this. "Ramen Don. Aren't you hungry?" Her stomach growled a bit, causing Neku to sigh. "Come on."

The girl nodded, following after her partner.

* * *

><p>"Shoyu Ramen."<p>

"Shio, please."

Cherushii and Neku sat at a table near the window as the waitress left with their orders. She twirled her chopsticks in her hand, her chin propped up on the palm of her free one. She watched as people passed by, minding their own business and not having to fear for their lives. "Everyone is so carefree…"

"Almost too carefree." Cherushii's violet eyes looked at Neku, a bit surprised. Her partner sighed, "They think that they could live on with their lives, placing their expectations and values on people's shoulders, telling them how to live their life. People should just shut up and keep their values to themselves."

"You sure are passionate about that…" Cherushii muttered, saying a quick thank you when they got their ramen. She slurped some of it up, enjoying the salty goodness. "But there's no need to be harsh. Maybe people expect a lot from others because they want them to do their best."

Neku scowled. " What if they can't? What then? They'll just keep pushing people until they get what they want." He looked at her uncomfortable position, before sighing. "Look, I got my values, so you can keep yours, alright?"

She nodded, giving a soft "Alright."

They finished their ramen in silence, walking out of Ramen Don. The two wandered around for a while, Cherushii biting her lip. "We still need to figure out the mission." She reminded him. "Any idea so far?"

The orange-haired boy shrugged. "Not really. Do you know any trends related to rodents?"

She stopped, crossing an arm over her chest and tapping her finger lightly against her chin. "Hm… Well, there's the trend Mus Rattus. That has to do with a rodent."

Neku nodded. "Okay, that sounds like a good start. Where can we find a store that sells Mus Rattus?"

Cherushii frowned, tapping her finger against her chin as she thought. "There's one at the Shibuki Main Store. That's the only store location I know of however."

By the time she finished her sentence, Neku was already walking off.

"Hey! Wait for me!"

* * *

><p>"Honestly! We're partners aren't we?" Cherushii sighed, having finally caught up to Neku. "You have to wait for me!"<p>

The orange haired boy groaned in annoyance and looked over at her. "You're too slow! Don't you want to get the mission over with?"

Cherushii bit her lip, thinking for a minute. "Well… Yeah, but we don't have a time limit. Who knows how long it's going to take before we get a break like this."

Neku finally sighed but continued to walk, but at a slower pace. A soft smile could be seen on Cherushii's face though.

* * *

><p>"This is the place, huh?" Her partner said, looking up at the store. She nodded and walked in.<p>

"It should be easy to get some stuff from this place since no one can see-" She was interrupted when the store manager greeted her.

"Welcome! Can we help you with anything?" She asked in an almost too cheery voice.

Cherushii jumped in surprise. "Y-You can see me?" She exclaimed.

The store manager looked at her like she was crazy. "Um… Yes?"

Cherushii's eyes widened even more before grabbing Neku's wrist and pulling him aside. "What the heck is going on? I thought people couldn't see us!"

"Calm down." Neku said. "Buildings with that symbol-" he pointed to the red mark on a building across from it- "make the people inside see us so that we could buy stuff. Weren't you wondering why the guy at Ramen Don could see us?"

"Well… N-No… I was too hungry to really care at the time."

He groaned, rolling his eyes before facing the store manager once again. "Sorry about my…. Acquaintance. She hasn't taken her meds so she's a bit…."

Cherushii stared at him wide-eyed before glaring at him. "Hey! What do you mean meds? I'm not crazy!"

"She also likes to deny it…. A bit sensitive about the subject."

"NEKU!"

The boy ignored her yelling and glares and slammed his hand onto her mouth, shutting her up. "So anyway…. Do you have any Mus Rattus brands-shit!" Neku quickly retracted his hand, wiping the saliva from the bite on his shorts.

Cherushii wiped her mouth, glaring at Neku. "She bit me!" Neku exclaimed before she quickly cut him off.

"Just show us the Mus Rattus brands." She said calmly, like nothing happened.

The store manager looked at them, feeling slightly uncomfortable before showing the two to where the brands were. She quickly left the two alone, telling them to call her if she needed them.

"You're making it look like I'm crazy!" She hissed angrily.

"You bit me!"

"Honestly, 'taking my meds'? Why did you have to say all that stuff?"

"You fucking bit me!"

"Oh, here they are." Cherushii said, picking out a few pins. The storekeeper let them get it for free, just as long as the two got out of her store as soon as possible. The whole time, Neku was muttering things like 'stupid girl….''bit me….'.

His partner turned her head towards them once they left the store, her black hair with blue tips flying around a bit. "So what do we do now?" She asked, holding out the pins to him.

Neku took three of the pins. "We have to find out what Shibuya's biggest music center is."

She pocketed the rest before tapping her finger against her chin. "Mm…." Cherushii hummed, thinking hard. "First, why don't we name all the districts that have to do with music?"

"There's only AMX and Towa Records." He explained.

Cherushii winced when the word 'Towa Records' came up. "Let's go and check on AMX first." She said before walking off. Neku raised an eyebrow before shrugging and following after her.

* * *

><p>Cherushii pinned the other three pins that Neku hadn't taken to her jeans. "Okay… So I flip my player pin and scan for any Noise?" She repeated what he had explained to her earlier.<p>

He merely nodded his head.

She took a deep breath before tossing the pin up in the air….

And missing it when she tried to catch it.

Cherushii turned a bright scarlet and she laughed nervously, picking the black and white pin off the ground. "L-Let's try that again…" She said.

Each and every time Cherushii tossed the pin into the air, she would either try to catch it too early or too late. She groaned in frustration, about to throw it in the air again when a hand came on top of hers.

"Just. Let. Me. Do it." Neku said through gritted teeth. They were standing here for 10 minutes already! Did this girl really suck that much? He took out his own pin and flipped it. "Open up… Your senses…" He whispered to himself, scanning people's minds.

_Man… What a drag, I want to go home._

_What's taking so long?_

_Knew I shoud'a picked it up._

He cleared his mind away from those thoughts before focusing on one thing. "I sense a disturbance in the force…" He said aloud.

Cherushii raised an eyebrow. "What the heck is he talking about?" She wondered before Neku opened his eyes and they were quickly transported to another zone. Noise appeared in front of them and she began to fight.

* * *

><p>She breathed heavily, sitting on the ground. "That… That was…. pure torture." Cherushii gasped. They had been fighting Noise for what seemed like hours but only a few minutes. She could already see the change in trend however. People were now wearing simple colored t-shirts, skirts, and such. "It… It worked." She breathed, looking around.<p>

"Y-Yeah…" Neku said as well. The two stood up, Neku taking out his phone when it rang. "Mission's complete. We did it."

Cherushii let out a relieved sigh. "Thank goodness…"

"Now tell me why you didn't want to go to Towa Records."

She let out a slight squeak and turned to Neku. "Wh-What are you talking about?"

He stuffed his hands into his shorts' pockets. "You were acting all edgey when Towa Records came up, like you are right now."

Cherushii winced, rubbing her arms nervously. "I-It's n-nothing alright?" She looked away from him. "It's like you said… I got my values and you got yours, so we have to keep them to ourselves…"

Neku stared at her for a while longer before shrugging. He'll bring it up later again. The two moved over to an alley and leaned against the wall. Cherushii fingered with the hem of her shirt. She felt lost without her locket…. She shook her head before falling asleep.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: AND THERE"S THE END FOLKS! I know I haven't updated the story in a while. I got caught up with swimming and didn't have time to update much lately... But anyways I would like to thank _MCRDanime and Aquarii _for the reviews!**

**REVIEWS! REVIEWS! REVIEWS! **

**Reviews are loved here!**


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